The Fire
by Wotcher Motherduckers
Summary: Harry Potter was abused worse than anybody ever suspected. At age five, he is saved by a strange, slightly scary man. Can Sirius Black find a way to get his godson away from the Dursleys safely? Or will he need the help of a certain black dog persona to gain the trust of the boy and his abusive family? Sirius x Harry bonding. No Slash! Rated T for abuse and because I'm paranoid!
1. Chapter 1

Harry Potter of Number 4, Privet Drive, was not normal, thank you very much.

However much the five-year-old would pray and beg and wish that he just couldn't be normal. Instead, he was an ungrateful freak. And ungrateful freaks weren't allowed to be happy, at least, that's what the child's guardian, a large man by the name of Vernon Dursley had told him since the day he had been left on the man's doorstep, a mere one-year-old.

Four years, two months and one day later, it was the second of January 1986, and the young boy was busily preparing breakfast for his 'family', his Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia, cousin Dudley and Aunt Marjorie, better known as Aunt Marge, who was staying with them for the New Year. The shouting of Vernon Dursley would not wake the neighbours as many would expect it would, they were well used to it by now.

Harry whimpered slightly as his hand was pressed down against the still burning gas hob as punishment for burning the bacon. Vernon merely growled and pressed down harder on the small boy's hand, burning it worse for daring to make a sound while being punished at all. He was then punched hard in the face by the beefy man and promptly thrown into the cupboard under the stairs that was his room.

Meanwhile, Sirius Black was lying awake in Azkaban. It had been four years since he came here. Roughly anyway. He counted by Christmas days when the dementors would relent ever so slightly, allowing Sirius a break from the screaming. At current, Sirius was in the form of Padfoot, watching a dementor glide towards the cell as it did every day. The creature moved straight past as it usually did with empty cells. It had never done that with his cell; he was far too dangerous for them to ignore, with far too much determination and far too many happy memories. He frowned, trying to figure out what was different this time.

Then it hit him. He was in his animagus form. They couldn't sense him.

He had a way to get out!

Harry sat in his cupboard, silently sobbing, nursing his injured hand under the light of the candle. Strictly speaking, he wasn't supposed to have a candle. He had no means of lighting it in the tiny room. But, whenever he really needed it, the fire always seemed to help him. It was his only friend, there to light the path for him, to console him, to chase away the bad dreams. It let him control it. It would spread on his command, diminish by will, allow him to hold it or even just warm him.

Usually, it didn't hurt him. It only ever hurt him when his family were there, and he knew why. It hurt him so he didn't get in more trouble for being an ungrateful freak who couldn't even be punished properly, let alone do anything else. Sometimes, it seemed to talk to him, whispering words of encouragement or kindness. On occasion, he could even see a face in the flames! He had even written about that face for the creative writing challenge his teacher, Miss Dolyak, had set the class.

The man in the fire looked quite haggard, with dark hair made of smoke or ash, a thin face like Harry's, and strange eyes. They were grey, he didn't quite know how, but they were a handsome dove grey. Sometimes they looked hollow and sad, but most of the times he saw him, he had bright happy eyes that sparkled. The man could even turn into a big black doggy! Harry loved doggies, and he loved the man even more, even if he only saw him in the fire.


	2. Chapter 2

A large black dog collapsed into the arms of the stunned fisherman.

"How did you get this far out to sea, boy?" The man sighed, carefully carrying the shivering animal into the little cabin aboard the boat and setting it down by the fire. "Somebody must've dumped you out in the sea... How could somebody do that to a fine boy like you?" He was talking to himself; that much the man knew.

But he was wrong. Sirius looked up at him gratefully as a blanket was wrapped around his shivering body. The fur, which he had thought may keep him warm, only made him colder as the kind man carefully dried him, stroking his matted fur. Sirius let out an involuntary whimper of pain as the man rubbed against a cut he had gotten by scraping against a rock in the murky water surrounding Azkaban. The man, Simon Grimoire, frowned deeply and peered at the cut, swearing under his breath. He left the poor animal in the small cabin and went outside to put his catch away safely and return to shore so he could help Sirius more.

* * *

"Up boy! Up!" Petunia Dursley screamed at her nephew, who scrambled out of his cupboard. "Get dressed! We're going to the zoo to celebrate the new year. You're going to stay with Mrs Figg." She growled.

The little boy nodded fearfully.

"If she asks, you burnt your hand when helping me and Dudley make some cookies." She ordered. Harry once more nodded before being shooed back into his cupboard to 'get ready' which meant wait for everybody else to be ready in silence. He was glad he was going to Mrs Figg's. He had a whole day away from the Dursleys! Mrs Figg never seemed to notice when he snuck out so he could even go to the park!

He marvelled at this idea. Maybe today would be a good day.

* * *

When they reached the shore, Simon had to drag the dog to his little hut so he could at least feed it before it ran off. The beast growled at him but made no move to bite.

Sirius felt a little bad at putting up such a fight, but he really wanted to find Harry, his godson. He missed him. And now he was out, he could actually take care of him! He could find Moony and maybe even raise him together with his old friend.

He stopped struggling against Simon and trotted beside him, waiting patiently for the man to make the food he intended to give to Sirius, then realising he wasn't exactly strong enough to go and find Harry just yet...

* * *

 _ **Sirius Black Proclaimed Dead!**_

 _After four years in Azkaban, Sirius Black, mass-murderer and supporter of You-Know-Who, was found dead. There was no body found, but there was no evidence of Black escaping. After further investigation by several aurors, it was discovered that Black's body was thrown into the waters outside Azkaban, as many others' are._

 _Go to page 2 to read more on Black and his crimes._

 _Go to page 4 to read on Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived and Black's godchild!_

 _Go to page 8 to read about Black's possible innocence._

 _ **Sirius Black, Murderer or Innocent Marauder?**_

 _After Black's death, more questions have been posed by Black's case. It has been discovered that there was no trial at ALL! This could be deemed illegal! Could it be possible that Sirius Black wasn't the murderer everybody suspected him to be? To find out more, please read next week's edition, based on the upcoming trial on Black's innocence._

 _Articles Written By Ryo Goldstein._

* * *

Later the same day, Harry Potter was back at Number 4 Privet Drive, bare back to his uncle, who held his belt in his hand threateningly.

"Useless, ungrateful freak!" He shouted, face a disgusting shade of puce as he swung his hand down, the belt hitting his ward's back hard, making another long gash on the boy's back. Uncle Vernon had been drinking and was now angry because the boxing championship had been cancelled. Of course, he took his anger out on the young boy, who tried not to sob as he was struck over and over by the thick leather belt.

After what felt like hours, he discarded the belt and started punching the boy. He twisted his arm so hard it snapped. He continued to his him, then threw him into the cupboard under the stairs by the wrist, so he hit the wall and fell unconscious.

Fire curled around its wounded master, protecting him, keeping him warm as the creeping cold of a British winter's night forced itself into every nook and cranny of the house, not bothering any of the occupants but one. The small boy under the stairs shivered as the fire relented, put out by its master's unconsciousness and the cold night around him.

Harry Potter had given up on any hopes of being rescued...


	3. Chapter 3

_Monday 6_ _th_ _January 1986_

Harry Potter was dressed and ready for school. He liked school. He liked it a lot. He had a few friends there, who genuinely liked him.

His best friend was Hermione. She was really nice and really smart. And she didn't mind that he was a freak. She said that he was a good freak. Harry knew she was lying, but he pretended she wasn't, and was content, just for a while.

Today, Miss Dolyak had set them a partnered writing task. He was working with Hermione happily and they were writing their fairytale about a beautiful princess called Rowena and a wicked king called Salazar. Salazar hated Rowena even though she was his only niece and an orphan. He threw her out of the castle where she met a nice prince called Godric and a happy peasant woman called Helga. Godric and Helga took Rowena in and cared for her. They lived happily ever after in the little village where Helga lived, away from royalty and any sort of freakishness they could be accused of.

Miss Dolyak liked their story so much she gave them both five house points. Hermione high-five Harry, who smiled, forcing himself not to flinch away as he usually would. Hermione wouldn't hurt him. He was almost sure. Hermione was nice. Right?

Dudley didn't like their story, though. He was working with Pierce, as usual. His story was about a perfect prince called Dudley that ruled over the land of Privet happily. But his evil cousin Harry didn't like him and was very naughty, causing trouble in the castle. So Dudley fought him and killed Harry. Everybody cheered for their prince.

Miss Dolyak didn't like this story and insisted he write a new one, but no matter how hard she tried, the story always ended with Prince Dudley killing his cousin Harry.

Meanwhile, Harry and Hermione had written the second part to their story. Now, Salazar felt bad for being so mean to Rowena – Hermione's idea of course – and found the village. He apologized to Rowena, Helga, and Godric. They all went up to the castle and lived there, opening up the castle walls for peasant children, making it a school so they could also grow up happy. They were then allowed to paint them. The two smiled brightly as they drew and painted their characters, or well, Harry did. Harry was very good at art, and produced two perfect pictures of their trio in Helga's little cottage, then one of them at the castle. Next to each of the people, there was an animal, a companion. Helga had a badger, Rowena had a raven, Godric had a lion and Salazar had a snake. Both Harry and Hermione were very happy with these pictures. Hermione had helped with what the characters should look like and their clothes and surroundings. She had also suggested the animals. Harry insisted she took the picture of them in the cottage, as it was her favourite and then presented the other to Miss Dolyak who smiled and thanked him.

"But Harry, don't you want to take your picture home and show your aunt and uncle?" She asked with a kind smile. She was a little surprised when the boy shook his head.

"No, ma'am, they don't like me bringing things home, they say it's a waste of space, just like me." He said. Miss Dolyak frowned.

"Harry, I'm sure they don't say that. But if you don't want to take it home, I'd love to keep it. Thank you." She smiled at him brightly, reassuringly.

Harry smiled back brightly and walked back over to Hermione, smiling as the two settled down to talk about a game they could play at lunch.

* * *

Sirius had left Simon's care and was now running towards the nearest train station. He needed to find Remus. He probably hated him. He would probably turn him in so the Ministry of Magic could put him back in Azkaban. But he was his only chance of finding Harry. He had no idea where the little boy was.

He looked at the train map desperately, knowing how strange a dog reading a sign must be. Something clicked in his mind as he looked heard a disembodied voice announcing the arrival of a train. A train that was going to Surrey.

Surrey.

Little Whinging.

Privet Drive.

Number 4.

HARRY!

The dog barked happily and sped off towards the train that was just about to leave. He jumped aboard a luggage compartment hurriedly, unnoticed by the rushing crowds. He had done it. He was going to find Harry!

* * *

"BOY!" Harry tried to scramble into his cupboard as the shout came from his uncle, who was listening to Dudley's recount of the day. Harry had been too smart. He had beaten Dudley in the English assignment. He had beaten him in the maths assignment. He had beaten him in the spelling test. He was dead.

The beating was the worst he'd ever had. He was thankful his broken arm had healed itself overnight, or he was sure he'd be dead. There was so much blood... so much blood...

He was again left in the cupboard. The fire came again. It helped him. It kept him warm like a blanket, healing the worst of the wounds and cleansing the rest. Harry cried and cried as this happened.

"Nobody loves me..." He sobbed.

 _'Don't be so sure, little master. Somebody is coming for you. Be patient.'_ The fire had replied calmly, a sort of bird flickering in the flames.

"B-but... nobody will want me... I'm an ungrateful freak..." He sobbed still. The firebird wrapped itself around him.

"SHUT UP BOY!" Uncle Vernon yelled, throwing the cupboard door open. The firebird was gone of course, but... a feather of the magnificent beast was curled around Harry's wrist, unseen under the baggy and bloody clothes he wore.

Vernon growled but left, leaving Harry to wish, to wish for a family.

* * *

A/N: Hi, sorry I haven't popped up sooner, I'm just not really sure what to put here... I feel it's necessary to add that the stories will be important later, very much so, in fact. Also, sorry these are so short...


	4. Chapter 4

Harry stared at the feather wrapped around his wrist. It was beautiful, glowing and swirling with patterns. It looked like it should be burning him. But it wasn't. He was glad, of course. The firebird hadn't come back when he summoned his fire again.

Instead, the patterns just swirled around comfortingly. It was morning now. He wasn't allowed to make breakfast as Aunt Petunia said he'd steal some of it. He wasn't even having any lunch money or any food for lunch!

Harry was sent off to school, glad the fire had cleaned his wounds.

The school day was uneventful. There were no partnered tasks. No tests. They were doing a science experiment. Dudley's gang chased him as always, and Hermione stood up to them, only to get chased as well. She had later shared her lunch with him. School ended too soon for Harry.

As he began walking down the road with Hermione, heading home on foot while Petunia and Dudley took the car, he stopped dead. A car was spiralling towards them.

Hermione screamed. Harry didn't; he just shoved Hermione as far away from him as he could, out of the path of the car.

He winced as he prepared for impact...

* * *

A/N: Super sorry this is so short and ends on a cliffhanger, but I just couldn't resist being a little mean to my readers... If there are any!


	5. Chapter 5

Sirius had gotten off the train late at night and had slept, all through the night and most of the day. He wandered around, looking for Privet Drive, passing a school. He looked around, hoping to see Harry walking home with his family.

He then heard an ear shattering scream. Or it was ear shattering for a dog anyway. He spun around and saw Harry. He saw him push some girl away from him. The girl stopped, sprawled on the grass of somebody's front yard. Then he saw why.

A car was spiralling out of control. It was going to hit Harry, his Harry, his pup.

With a feral growl, he sped forwards and grabbed Harry by the collar, yanking him out of the way as the car wrapped around the trunk of a tree planted on the little road. He relieved. He had his pup; Harry was safe.

And he was shaking like a leaf.

People ran over, staring. A teacher gently lifted Harry away from him, too stunned to register Sirius growling at her angrily. The girl ran over and hugged Sirius. People were taking pictures. Parents were staring.

The man in the car had gotten out and was gushing apologies to the teacher. Sirius flopped down, lying on the pavement as Harry was set down. His pup stroked him, obviously stunned and confused about what had happened.

At least he was alive.

* * *

Harry stared at the big doggy that had saved him. It was the doggy the man in the fire turned into.

"Paddy." He whispered, giggling when the dog wagged his tail happily. "Is that your name? Paddy?"

The dog seemed to wink at him, confirming this. Harry giggled again and then forced himself to stop.

"Come on, Harry, Hermione, I'll drive you two home, maybe we can avoid any more incidents." Miss Dolyak said kindly, leading the pair to her car, away from the crowds. The dog followed them, tucking itself under Harry's skinny arm.

Harry and Hermione got in their teacher's car. Paddy whined when he wasn't allowed in with them. Miss Dolyak drove off, first to Hermione's house. Hermione's parents were relieved she was okay when Miss Dolyak explained what had happened. Next, they went to Harry's house.

Petunia didn't seem to care about what had happened, ushering Harry inside to do his chores and slamming the door in the teacher's face.

Paddy was waiting inside for Harry. He had tricked Petunia into believing he had saved Dudley, who was screaming as a car went down the road, the idiot boy standing in the middle of the road. So technically he had saved Dudley. Harry smiled and stroked the dog. Petunia screeched at him when he did this, then ordering him to feed Paddy and make dinner, forgetting about what she had said that very morning due to her migraine.

Harry did as he was told. Paddy wolfed down the steak he had been given and watched him making dinner, a roast lamb. He didn't seem happy. Harry wondered if he wanted more food. So he gave him one of the potatoes. Paddy shook his head and nudged him gently, careful not to overbalance him. Of course, he still ate the potato...

* * *

Sirius watched his godson cook a roast dinner for his family. What the hell? He couldn't even cook pancakes properly and he was 21 years older than the boy in front of him! He growled slightly as Vernon Dursley came in proudly with a dog collar and the best dog care supplies in town.

He put the stupid, jewel encrusted collar on Sirius, who tried hard not to growl at the stupid man. But nonetheless, he sat still as he was introduced to the fanciest fancy dog toys and supplies anybody could ever not really need when taking care of a dog as well as some much-needed bedding and grooming kits. Every few minutes, he sent a long suffering look at Harry, who worked hard to stifle his giggles as he did his chores.

It wasn't until after dinner that Sirius made up his mind.

The Whale – as Sirius had now dubbed Uncle Vernon – had yelled at Harry for not cleaning the spotless kitchen perfectly – a lie – and for eating one of the potatoes meant for Dudders – actually Sirius himself had eaten that and felt incredibly bad.

Then Vernon hit Harry. And not lightly. He smacked the boy so hard he fell to the ground and then kicked and punched the boy mercilessly.

Sirius watched, stunned. He didn't know what to do. He was too surprised to do anything to Vernon.

But he had an idea. He was taking his godson back... as soon as he had his wand...

And that meant a trip back to Grimmauld Place.

* * *

When the Dursleys were asleep, Sirius snuck into Harry's cupboard before he left. The little boy stared at the dog as it crawled closer to him and snuggled against him. Harry smiled sleepily and hugged the animal, eventually falling into a dreamless sleep.

Once the boy was asleep, Sirius left. He went outside via the dog-flap Vernon had installed earlier. He then shifted to a human and apparated to 12 Grimmauld Place. His mother's portrait shrieked at him, so loudly he thought at first it was his mother. Then he remembered she was dead; he had been informed by a Ministry official the previous year. He sighed and walked upstairs to his father's study.

He was glad the old coot had a few good ideas, like replicating the wands of everybody in the family. He opened a draw or two before finding them, locked in a box with a blood seal. Thankfully, Sirius just needed to touch the box for it to open for him. He took out the replica of his own wand and then closed the box, shrinking it and putting it in the pocket of his ruined robes...

He suddenly grinned and raced to his old room. There were still some clothes there. He changed into a pair of jeans and a plain white top, taking up a muggle style. He then went into the en suite bathroom and shaved, taking the opportunity to clean up after so long in Azkaban. Hopefully, he wouldn't scare Harry so much if he looked more normal.

He moved the shrunken box of wands into his jean pocket then put on a jacket. Finally, he felt just slightly normal.

He apparated back to Number 4 Privet Drive and shifted back to Paddy. He snuggled back up to his godson happily.

* * *

Harry dreamed of the fire. The fire hadn't come when he asked today because Paddy was there. It had told him that it wasn't needed anymore. Harry was sad so the fire then came back again. It apologised to Harry and promised it would stay with him always. Harry was happy again.

When he woke up, Paddy wasn't with him. He got up and put some food in the dog bowl for him happily, then made some pancakes for the Dursleys.

He got ready while the Dursleys woke and ate. Paddy was still nowhere to be found.

* * *

 _Date: Tuesday 7_ _th_ _January 1986  
Name: Harry James Potter  
Class: R-MD  
Task: Spelling Test  
_ _1) Unkind  
_ _2) Ungrateful  
_ _3) Unhappy  
_ _4) Unhelpful  
_ _5) Unusual  
_ _ **You did well, Harry! You spelt these words correctly, however, these weren't the words. The words I assigned you were: kind, grateful, happy, helpful, usual. What happened? MD.**_ _Uncle Vernon says these words describe me better. He added 'un' onto my spelling list!_ _ **Harry, please don't lie, I don't think your uncle would do anything like that! MD.**_

Harry looked at his spelling test results sadly. Miss Dolyak didn't believe him. He wasn't lying! He wasn't! Hermione believed him, but nobody else did.

Later, at lunch time, he and Hermione were eating by the fence. It was their favourite place because it was very quiet and nobody really came over, not even Dudley and his gang. The two were happily chatting. Harry winced when something warm and a little wet nudged his back. He turned around. Paddy grinned at him, eliciting a little shriek from a very surprised Hermione. Harry giggled and pet paddy through the fence around the school. Hermione did so as well after a moment, a little scared by the huge dog. She was scared of really big dogs like Paddy, she told Harry and who told her in response that Paddy wasn't like other dogs. He had no clue just how true that was.

* * *

Sirius had spent all morning working. He had bought a house down Privet Drive and was determined to make good friends with Vernon and Petunia Dursley. That way, he'd be able to talk to Harry, right? He hoped so. He even had an entire persona made up and he was to start working at Harry's primary school as the psychologist, after forging several documents and using magic to learn all he needed to know about child psychology! There was no way he was going to fail this. No way in hell.

* * *

Remus Lupin sat at home, reading the Daily Prophet on his friend's trial. He gasped.

 _ **Scandal At The Ministry**_

 _After a trial to figure out if Sirius Black was innocent as some suspected, Sirius Black has been deemed innocent, just a bit too late. Peter Pettigrew, who Black was suspected of killing, was found in the home of Arthur Weasley, Head of the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts office in the Ministry. Under the influence of veritaserum_ , _he confessed to being an illegal animagus and me to having been the Potter's Secret Keeper. He also was the murderer of 13 innocent muggles. He has been sentenced to a life sentence in Azkaban and Sirius Black has been cleared of all charges._

 _Article by Ryo Goldstein_

Remus stared. Sirius was innocent. Peter was to blame.

And Harry... He'd been left with the Dursleys for no reason. That was it. He was getting his cub back. His pack had been separated for too long!


	6. Chapter 6

_Friday 10_ _th_ _January 1986_

"Students, I'd like to introduce you to our new psychologist, Mr. Tonks." The headmaster introduced Sirius to the entire school later that week in an assembly. He had chosen the name Tonks after his favourite cousin. Or, more precisely, his favourite cousin's daughter, who hated her first name and would not allow anybody to call her anything other than Tonks.

Harry watched the man in fascination. It was the man from the fire! Mr. Tonks smiled at the students as he sat down uncomfortably on the teacher's comfy chairs that were staggered around the hall.

After that, the headmaster told a story.

"There were once three men. These three men were brothers, on a trip. They found a river they could not cross. It was too deep and too fast flowing. So the brothers built a bridge and walked across, instead of swimming. Death appeared before them. He was angry that he had been cheated out of three new victims, for travellers usually drowned in the river. But Death was cunning. He pretended to congratulate the three brothers upon their intelligence and said that each had earned a prize for having been clever enough to evade him. The eldest brother asked for a sword that could beat any enemy. So Death took a branch from a nearby elder tree and fashioned the eldest brother a sword that would always win. He gave it to the brother. The second brother asked for a way to bring back the dead. So Death took a stone from the river and gave it to the brother, telling him it would bring back anybody he wished it to by turning it three times in hand. The youngest brother asked for something a little less drastic. He asked for a cloak that would allow him to go unnoticed by Death. Death granted his wish, ripping part of his own cloak and giving it to the man. The three brothers went their separate ways. The eldest got into a fight at an inn. Somebody sneaked into his room and slit his throat in the night. The second went home, where he summoned his late wife. But she was sad; she didn't belong in the mortal world. So the second brother killed himself so he may join her. The youngest brother continued to travel for a long time. He eventually settled down with a family. When it was his time to die, he gave his cloak to his son and went with Death as old friends." The headmaster was telling a remarkably familiar story...

It was the tale of the three brothers, of the Deathly Hallows, Sirius realised. What was a wizarding story like that doing being told in a muggle primary school? Maybe the man was a Squib. Or the son of a Squib. Either way, he didn't really care, as long as his cover hadn't been blown.

"So, children, what was the moral of that story?" The headmaster had asked. He looked around as a few hands of the eldest children shot up, year fives and sixes. And then, one hand right at the front. The headmaster smiled at Harry. "Harry Potter, do you know the answer?" He asked the boy in a kind tone.

"The youngest brother asked for something that was smart, that wasn't necessarily for his own purposes. The moral is about not being selfish." Harry said shyly. Sirius beamed upon hearing this. He had needed to be told that – by Lily of course – when he was young. And he would never get it by the age of five!

The headmaster seemed equally as happy with this response. "Well done Harry. Ten house points." He rewarded.

After that, they sang a hymn, lead by the year five teacher, Mr. Wilson, or Graham as he had been introduced to the man earlier that day, on the piano and a small group of musicians. They sang Give Me Oil in My Lamp, a song that confused Sirius completely. Why did one need oil when they could just use magic? Nonetheless, he mouthed along to the song, unsure of the lyrics.

* * *

After the morning assembly, it was time for Sirius to meet his first round of students.

He started with a year six by the name of Poppy Robinson, who was having trouble with her SATs because she was too stressed out. He had listened to her rant about the unnecessary stress, then suggested she speak to her teachers if she really felt it was too much pressure, and assured her he would do the same when he got the chance. She thanked him and went on her way.

Many of the students were similar, with exam related stress problems.

He looked at the next name on his list. Well, names.

 _Harry Potter and Hermione Granger_

He frowned a little, waiting. There was a timid knock at the door and Sirius stood so quickly it made his head spin. Ignoring that, he walked to the door and opened it.

His godson and the girl he had saved from the car looked up at him with slight trepidation.

"Come inside, Harry, Hermione. What are you here to talk to me about?" He asked, forcing a cheery attitude while worrying deeply about what was going on.

The children shuffled inside and were lead to the desk. They sat down opposite Sirius, who sat a moment before them.

"M-Miss Dolyak sent us t-to talk to you a-about b-b-bullying." Harry stuttered, seemingly afraid. Sirius frowned a little and nodded.

"Ah, another case of bullying. Would you two like some hot chocolate?" He asked, remembering the little kitchen unit in the corner, meant for just that. He found the children were a little more comfortable talking when they weren't freezing and had a nice warm beverage to loosen their tongue... And it never hurt to add a tad of Veritaserum, just in case. He felt it might be more necessary in this situation.

He didn't wait for either child's response as he poured them a mug each. He put the mugs in front of them.

"No allergies, right?" He looked to both of them. They nodded.

"Okay, now, who's bullying you?" He asked, sitting back down with his own mug of hot chocolate.

Harry didn't speak. Sirius was glad when the girl, Hermione, did.

"A boy in our class called Dudley Dursley, sir." She said. "He chases us and beats us up when he and his gang catch us. We don't know why, though, sir."

Sirius was really starting to hate this sir thing. It made him feel like an old man or something.

"Call me Sirius." He insisted for the millionth time that day. He knew teachers rarely went by their first names, but he felt it was better if the children called him that as he called them by their first names, so why shouldn't they be able to do the same back? It was probably some crap about respect. But he didn't care much for respect. "But that sounds serious if you'll pardon the pun." He said.

"Y-yes, it is quite," Hermione said, blinking in surprise at the informality of the teacher.

"I'm supposing you've informed your teacher about this. Other than being sent to see me, what has been done?"

"Nothing has been done, sir," Hermione said. "I mean Sirius, sorry." She hurried to say. Sirius nodded and looked at Harry.

"You live with Dudley, don't you, Harry? How does he treat you at home?" He asked, despite knowing the answer from witnessing it himself.

"He beats me up there as well. He has a game called Harry Hunting that he likes to play a lot at home." Harry found himself saying, despite wishing to tell a lie as usual.

"And what do your carers do?" Sirius asked, glancing at Hermione's equally shocked face.

"They praise him. Uncle Vernon will even join in. Especially when he's drunk." Harry said, trying to stop himself.

"Hermione, would you mind leaving so Harry and I can continue our chat?"

"Of course, Sirius..." Hermione said and walked out, still quite stunned.

"Harry, has your uncle ever struck you as a punishment for something?" Sirius asked, remembering the previous night. Harry nodded. "Was it for something very small?" Again Harry nodded. "Okay, Harry. You can go in a second." He said, writing out a form. He folded it and put it in an envelope. "Please give this to your aunt and uncle tonight. I'll be seeing you next week, okay?"

Harry nodded and took the letter.

Sirius watched his godson leave, knowing he could actually do something now. He had a nice meeting with the Dursleys coming up, supposedly about Dudley and Harry's process academically.

Oh, how he wanted to wring their necks... For now, this was all he could do.


	7. Chapter 7

Vernon Dursley stared at the letter he had been handed by his nephew. He opened it, growling slightly.

 _Dear Mr. and Mrs. Dursley,_

 _I am happy to inform you that Dudley and Harry are doing incredibly well in school! As such, we wish to ask you to a meeting at the school on Monday evening at 3:30 to discuss their progress and targets._

 _Hoping to see you soon,_

 _Sirius Tonks, School Psychologist and Student Progress Tracker._

Beneath the letter was a slip asking them to put whether they were indeed coming to the meeting. Vernon signed happily and assigned the boy some chores.

He looked proudly at his family, now sitting with him in the living room, his wife beside him, his little son on his lap, and their dog curled up by his feet.

"Dudley, what are you going to call your doggy? We need to get him a tag soon!" Vernon said, smiling at his son.

Dudley screwed up his angelic little face.

"Snuffles." He said after a whole five minutes of thinking.

"What a perfect name!" Vernon said and patted the dog's head. "Welcome to the family, Snuffles!"

Snuffles looked around, then at the door, sending a long-suffering glance at Harry who was vacuuming outside, practically begging the small boy to save him from the torture.

Harry giggled slightly, much to Snuffles' delight, only quietly.

* * *

The weekend was rougher than usual.

Harry was beaten daily. At least thrice daily.

Correction: thrice hourly.

Sirius growled at Vernon and Dudley and Petunia all the time. They didn't seem to notice him.

* * *

 _Monday 13_ _th_ _January 1986_

Sirius sat in his office, making another cup of hot chocolate for his next student. He checked the list absent-mindedly.

 _Hermione Granger._

He sighed. Right. Harry's friend. She wanted to talk about what was happening to Harry. Right.

He had forgotten. He added an extra drop of Veritaserum, just in case.

There was a knock at the door. A tentative little knock that made him jump.

"Hermione, come in." He said brightly, forcing a happy tone.

"Good afternoon, Sirius," Hermione said politely, sitting down. He set the hot chocolate down in front of her and sat down.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" He asked calmly, swirling his water with the bright pink straw he had put in it.

"W-Well... I'm just so worried about Harry, you know? He acts so strangely and I've tried talking to Child Services but they always say they have no records of him. They've said there'll be investigations, but there never are any. And after what happened with the car... I don't know what's going to happen to him. I keep seeing these bruises and cuts on him and I don't know what caused them and I'm really worried, what can I do?" She gushed, surprised by her own inability to stop.

Sirius nodded with a sigh. Dumbledore had been blocking the Child Services... Oh god...

He had to go to Remus.

"Don't worry about it, Hermione; everything is going to be sorted out as soon as possible, tonight even. I have a meeting with the Dursleys to discuss the matter." He said soothingly. "Now go on to class, I'll see you later, dear." He said, almost wincing on the endearment. Gods, he sounded like a _real teacher_.

Hermione nodded. "I'm serious, there's nothing to worry about." He said gently. "Alright then, that about settles it. Can you send the next person in here please?"

The girl walked out, leaving him with several agonising hours left until he could get his hands on Dursleys chubby little throat and...

No.

He wouldn't do that.

He could do so much worse.

* * *

Remus Lupin paced in his living room. How could he have been so stupid? After visiting the Dursleys residence, he had put two and two together. Somebody was hurting somebody.

The Dursleys were hurting Harry. Harry. His cub. James' son. His _godson_.

He growled like a feral wolf and glanced at his watch. 1:15.

He continued pacing until...

 _Crack!_

Remus looked up at the sound, the promise of somebody apparating into the room.

"Moony!" He heard this first. He looked up, still growling, to see his old friend. Sirius Black watched him for a moment, stunned by the fierce expression.

Said expression softened slightly as Remus rushed forwards and hugged Sirius tightly. "Padfoot." He sighed, relieved.

After a while catching up – "I'm... free? They found out the truth?!" – Sirius finally told Remus his news on Harry. Remus then told his. They shared a look, a determined, mischievous look that everybody close to the Marauders knew.

Trouble was brewing up a tempest.

* * *

A/N: Teeheehee, trouble's a-brewing!


	8. Chapter 8

Vernon and Petunia Dursley walked into the psychology room of their son and nephew's primary school. A man sat on a chair behind a desk. He was a bizarre man – with messy black hair tied into a loose ponytail at the nape of his neck, a leather jacket, and casual jeans, a glass of water on the desk with a bright pink straw in it, which he twirled around, apparently bored.

"Good afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. Dursley. Please, sit down. Would you like some tea? Coffee?" He inquired calmly, standing politely. He shut the door as the pair sat down, echoing a request for tea.

"Colloportus," Sirius mumbled as he closed the door. "Muffliato." He then said.

He put his wand away, back into its pouch in his sleeve.

"So, I called you here to discuss the progress of Dudley Dursley and Harry Potter, correct?" He asked, adding several drops of Veritaserum.

"Correct." Vernon Dursley said gruffly. "Shouldn't you know, since you're the one who asked us here, Mr. Tonks."

"Just checking, sir. Security rules." He said calmly. "Now, you live... where?" He asked, checking his profile uselessly as he set the teacups down in front of the two. They both took a drink before answering.

"4 Privet Drive, though I don't see-"

"Thank you, Mr. Dursley," Sirius interrupted calmly. "So, about your nephew... I'm afraid I had to lie to you to bring you here. As you may know, Harry is being severely bullied by your son." He said, not letting them interrupt him. "And, of course, this has to be stopped. Were you aware of this?"

"Of course. We told him to do it." Vernon snorted.

"And you... praised him and even assisted him?" Sirius asked, sounding disgusted.

"Why wouldn't we? The brat deserves it!" Petunia added, scrunching up her horse like face. Sirius growled.

"Interesting. Are you aware of the prison sentencing for abuse of this proportion? It starts at 6 years and progresses to 9 years." Sirius said, obscurely calm.

"We are aware," Vernon said. "But what are you going to do about it? You have no-"

He never got to finish.

A scream interrupted the quiet atmosphere of Little Whinging Primary School.

* * *

 **Review Replies:**

 **MollyPrewettWeasley: Thanks for the positivity! I hope you stay tuned to find out all the possibly quite gory details.**

 **KShara Khan: I totally agree. I didn't even think of Azkaban when coming up with their sentence, though! The Kiss may even be too good.**

 **Guest: Thanks for the review. The addition of Remus was merely added because I believe Remus** _ **would**_ **try to do something. Remus is not actually going to end up co-godfathering (if that's even a word) Harry with Sirius as I have something a little more... Evil planned.**

 **I.C.2014: Thank you for reviewing** _ **(TWICE I may add)**_ **and the updates are very quick because I really want to get to the juicy part of this... and then they'll no doubt be quicker because I'll be typing very fast!**


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: This chapter will contain severe character injury/abuse/battery/physical bullying, minor swearing and character death. Please skip to the end of the chapter if you are bothered by these; there will be a brief summary for those triggered by such texts. Also, I DO NOT CONDONE ABUSE OR ANY FORM OF HARM TO OTHER HUMANS. This story is purely based on my perception of what the Dursleys may have treated Harry like. Also, note that it goes without saying that I don't own anything but characters and places and plots you don't recognise.

* * *

The playground monitor watched Harry and Dudley with a sharp eye as they moved around the empty space, waiting for their guardians to finish their meeting.

She knew Dudley was a bully. He tormented Harry as the other read quietly. She knew Harry wouldn't react.

She turned away from them with a frustrated sigh, instead yelling at some year 7 boys from the nearby secondary school for loitering.

When she turned around, she gasped.

Dudley was smirking widely as he punched and kicked and hit and threw and… Where the heck did the kid get a knife?!

Harry whimpered in pain as he was stabbed and cut where Dudley had already wounded him. He was used to it, so he didn't cry out loud enough for Dudley to hear. The only difference was that Dudley usually used the kitchen knives if he wanted to do something like this – not a jagged and quite blunt rock that burned him to the bone.

The playground monitor screamed as Dudley stabbed his cousin right beside his collar bone. He then shoved the younger boy down the stairs that lead down to the school gates. The crumpled figure hit the steps one by one, splattering them with blood and breaking many bones and bruising some organs in the process, before landing in a heap at the bottom.

* * *

Sirius raced out of the classroom after quickly unlocking the door with wordless magic.

No.

No.

No.

Harry was sprawled on the ground at the bottom of the steps leading up to the school, almost gurgling as he tried to breathe, Dudley standing triumphantly over him.

Miss Dolyak – Sarah, he no knew her as – ran out and gasped quietly. The woman wasn't one to waste time like the playground monitor, who stood there in shock. She whipped out her phone and called an ambulance.

Sirius crouched beside Harry, checking for a pulse, breathing accelerating wildly into hyperventilation. His godson looked so small, so fragile like that, bleeding and broken and dying.

No.

No.

No.

Harry couldn't die. He couldn't fail James.

Choking down sobs, he reached for his wand. But Sarah already stood beside him, her own in hand...

What? Sarah was a witch...? He was so confused.

* * *

Harry stared at the swirling fiery patterns that made up the beautiful bird before him. The firebird was here. It was here to save him, to take him away from the Dursleys. He relieved.

But pain hazed the beautiful sight.

Grey oozed into the vision, blurring it, blinding him. Without the fiery warmth of his friend, he shivered and trembled.

"Vulnera Sanentur!" He heard a muffled voice sob the nonsense and the grey began to fade, and again he could see the firebird, now in the form of Sirius Tonks.

Sirius offered him a hand, which he took. The feather around his wrist allowed the fire to touch him without burning as it usually did, even within this strange world of darkness.

"Come, Harry, there is much to discuss." He said calmly, leading him to a place light. No more darkness. Ahead, he could see beautiful fiery gates. Everything was clear. Sirius was a normal man, though his eyes were the colour of fire and his hair more of a smoky ash colour.

"W-what do we have to d-d-discuss, Padfoot?" Harry asked. He had no idea where the name had come from, it just felt right.

"I've told you of wizards, I believe?" Padfoot waited for Harry's nod before continuing. "Well, despite what your aunt and uncle say, they are real. And you are one. So am I... well, the man whose appearance I am borrowing is, anyway. His name is Sirius Black. He goes as Sirius Tonks though at current, as he is supposed to be dead. He is also your godfather. He came here to get you from your carers but found it quite hard." He began. Harry just nodded, confused but not saying so.

"Anyway, that is unimportant. You must trust him, he will help you. You are wanted by some... Very bad people. And there are several spells laid on you that you do not know about. They cannot be removed by my magic, but are suppressed by the feather I gave you." Padfoot paused for a moment. "You, Harry, are famous you see. To the wizards, you are the Boy-Who-Lived. You, at age 1, defeated the dark lord Voldemort, thus saving not only the wizards from his power but also the other magical creatures.

"You also, unknowingly, vanquished a much more powerful conqueror that night of Halloween. You defeated Mistress Eira. She used charm and seduction to darken and freeze the hearts of idiotic men. She brought the salvation of one with the death of many. She had control of Lord Voldemort and thus his followers. After her defeat, you were blessed by the leader of all the clans of magical creature... well, those with certain sentience and above. That, young master, is why I stay with you, I was appointed to care for you to the best of my ability without introducing magic to the muggles around you." Padfoot explained. Harry stared at him in wonder.

"And my name is not Padfoot, either, young master. I am Xiuhcoatl, the fire serpent and the firebird." He said, once again shifting. He now appeared as a sort of snake, fiery with eyes of oblivion. "Be safe, young master, I shall be with you."

With this, Xiuhcoatl disappeared and Harry fell back into the void of darkness.

* * *

Sarah Dolyak growled as the cut did not heal. Sirius was half sobbing over his godson. She pitied him, she knew who he was since he had arrived and chose not to reveal herself, fearing he would run again.

Vernon and Petunia were staring blankly at their son and nephew. They were shocked but unconcerned about their nephew.

She gave them a fierce glare and crouched by Harry as the ambulance arrived.

The paramedics bent over the boy for a long time, shoving Sarah away. She frowned and stood beside Sirius, trying and failing to calm him with soothing words. It seemed like forever before they were loading him onto a stretcher and into the ambulance. Sirius hurried into the ambulance, gripping Harry's little hand in his own like a lifeline. Sarah sat opposite Sirius; taking Harry's other hand gently in hers as the ambulance drove off quickly. She frowned when she noticed the fiery feather wrapped around Harry's wrist.

* * *

Sirius half ran to try and keep up with the bed Harry was on as the paramedics and others led it through the crowded hospital.

He wasn't allowed in the ICU, which only made him tenser as he paced in the waiting room. He felt Sarah's eyes on him as he did so, but said nothing, continuing to pace.

"Sirius, please calm down. Harry will be fine." Sarah assured him gently, taking hold of his arms and forcing him to stop.

"But what if he isn't? I have to do something..." He looked incredibly pained as he said this. "I can't let James down..." He whispered.

After an hour or so, they were allowed into the ICU.

Sirius ran to Harry's side and held the unconscious boy's hand, examining the medical equipment, the masses of gauze and bandages, the crude respirator, the morphine drip. He frowned deeply in concentration.

Sarah walked out with a sigh, leaving Sirius with his godson.

She didn't notice the dark figure slipping into the ward.

* * *

"Muffliato." Lucius Malfoy whispered as he shut the door of the ward silently. "Colloportus." He added, smirking. Nobody would disturb him now. He would once again be the favourite of the Dark Lord.

Sirius Black had spun around and said something he should not have in front of Harry, his wand now out.

"Monitum," Sirius said, thus alerting Remus something was wrong. It was a spell he had developed with the Marauders. It sent a warning to the others still true to their cause to cause mischief without bringing true harm to the victim.

Remus appeared beside him in a second.

Both raised their wands before Lupin's was cast aside by wordless magic.

Lucius grinned, advancing. "Stupify." He simply said, pointing his wand at Sirius, who fell back.

"Locomotor Wibbly!" Remus countered, trying to aim a Rennervate at Sirius, which failed.

"That's all you have? Pitiful." Lucius smirked as Remus instead cast an Ennervate spell, thus waking Sirius who sat up groggily.

"AVADA KEVDA!" Lucius yelled, wand pointing at Sirius. Remus growled and leapt to the side, blocking Sirius.

The green light was the last thing the lycanthrope saw.

Sirius yelled something unintelligible then fired spells at Lucius in rapid succession.

"Expelliarmus. Sanguinem Ulcus." He growled, using a curse his grandmother Cassiopeia had taught him. The blood boiling curse. Lucius screamed in agony and disappeared.

Sirius growled, then broke down crying. Moony was dead.

* * *

Summery for those who chose not to read:

While Harry and Dudley were waiting for their guardians, Dudley harmed Harry severely with a sharp rock, used as a knife. He then pushed Harry down a set of stairs that lead up to the school. The playground monitor watching them screamed, attracting the attention of the others. Harry was rushed to hospital with Sirius and Miss Dolyak, now known as Sarah. When Sirius was alone with Harry, Lucius Malfoy came, in an attempt to kill Harry to gain the favour of Voldemort. Remus appeared to help Sirius after he let out a distress signal. During the fight, Lupin was killed. Sirius got mad and used Dark Magic on Lucius.

While Harry was unconscious, the firebird, Xiuhcoatl, explained to Harry that he was a wizard, how his parents died and what happened to Voldy Moldy, all of which you should know, in a sort of out of body experience. Xiuhcoatl then told Harry that he had in fact not only defeated Voldemort, but also another Dark Lord (Lady actually but oh well) by the name of Mistress Eira, a woman of some sort who charmed others into doing her dirty work, freezing their hearts. She had done this to Voldemort, going as far as to fuse her soul to his, so if either was killed, they had a way of returning without Eira having to kill anybody. Harry defeated her the same way as Voldemort at age 1, which is what actually caused the lightning scar – a blessing from other species of magical creature who were relieved that Eira was dead. There are also some other spells on him, though it is undetermined what.


	10. Chapter 10

Sarah Dolyak sat in the waiting room. She had been informed by the headmaster that the police were coming to interview her and Sirius at some point to find out what happened to Harry, and the Dursleys would be interviewed, not only by the muggle police but by the Wizarding Children Needs representatives.

She frowned when she heard sobbing coming from Harry's ward, standing and hurrying over in case something had happened.

She wasn't expecting to see Sirius knelt on the ground in front of Remus Lupin, who was unconscious. Or, she hoped he was unconscious.

"Sirius? What in Merlin's name happened?" She asked, blanching at the sight.

"He... he killed him..." Sirius whispered sadly. She sighed. So he wasn't just unconscious...

"Who killed him?" She asked gently, surprising herself at how calm she was.

"Lucius Malfoy." He growled. Sarah frowned, not knowing who that was. As she had actually grown up in Wales, she hadn't gone to Hogwarts, but to Ysgol Myrridn, the school of magic there. As such, she wasn't aware of the Pureblood bastard that had killed Remus and corrupted the government.

Sarah sighed and nodded, deciding to find out for herself and sort this out.

Merlin, when did her life become so complicated?

* * *

Harry stared at the pearly gates. They were beautiful, but he wasn't allowed in. He watched a nice man pass by him.

The man paused to talk to him, as not many had done. "Harry?" He asked softly. "You're here..? But you're not dead... Not yet if Lucius has his way." He muttered.

Harry shook his head at the man. "I'm not. Xiuhcoatl told me I was so close to death that I was brought here but I will get to leave soon!" He said happily. "I'm Harry Potter, what's your name?" He asked brightly.

"My name is Remus. Remus Lupin." He told him. "It's lovely to meet you, Harry. Do you know where I am?" He asked gently, smiling at the boy with clear relief.

"You're in the underworld. These are the gates of the Fields of Elysium." Harry explained with a grin. Lupin nodded, surprised.

"I'm terribly sorry, Harry. But I need to go now." He said softly.

"I know. You need to join the others!" Harry said with a grin.

* * *

Sirius stormed into Dumbledore's office in a rage, glaring at the elderly wizard.

"HOW DARE YOU?" He snarled. "HOW DARE YOU LEAVE HIM WITH THOSE MONSTERS!"

Dumbledore frowned.

Wait, Sirius was alive? But... he had been so sure he was dead... He had taken every precaution to make sure he would never get out to take Harry into his own care, so he could keep the boy shadowed from the wizarding world, a pawn for him to play with.

Sirius glared as he received no response.

"Dear boy, what has happened to make you so angry? I assure you Harry is completely safe with the Dursleys." Dumbledore said soothingly, not noticing Sarah standing behind Sirius with a bland but disbelieving expression.

"SAFE?!" Sirius roared. "Safe?! Is hospitalised safe?! Is starved and abused safe?!" He yelled. Dumbledore flinched.

So Sirius knew.

Had he just said Harry had been hospitalised?

He pushed aside this thought as he stared hesitantly at the angered ex-convict in front of him.

"N-no." He choked out. "We will attend to him immediately. I'll send Severus-"

"You will do no such thing. What you will do is inform the Ministry and Daily Prophet of Harry's current state and whose fault it is. Then, you will retrieve the necessary forms for me to officially adopt Harry. You will remove the spells you placed on Harry. You will say out of his life. Permanently." Sirius growled out this commandingly. He was determined.

Dumbledore winced and nodded.

Sirius glared and strode out, pulling the stunned Sarah out after him.

"We're going to get Madam Pomfrey. She'll heal Harry." He said firmly, making it absolutely clear with the tone of his voice that there was no room for discussion.

Sarah nodded but wrenched her arm away from his.

"You are going to do that. I am going to go back to Harry in case that Lucius Malfoy returns." She said calmly, not waiting for his nod before apparating off.

Sirius sighed and jogged down to the Medical Wing, ignoring the stunned and fearful glances of the students as he raced to find the mediwitch.

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry I haven't been posting for a day or two, but I am currently quite unwell. Thanks for the patience.**

 **Review Responses:**

 **alix33: Thanks for so many reviews and the spelling/grammar corrections. I'm sorry to say I am terrible at both so mistakes will be frequent despite this being my mother tongue. The names used in the fairytale were very deliberate. Harry came up with them, remembering them from... somewhere. Maybe we'll have more slight memories from Harry's time with his parents.**

 **KShara Khan: Sorry to say that Remus was killed for a reason that I cannot yet reveal! It is a major plot advance that will be coming up soon... Hopefully!**

 **Sb.012: A happy childhood he hopefully will get... If he wakes up... Joking, he will awake soon and will get the childhood he deserved in the end.**


	11. Chapter 11

After half an hour of the tense argument between himself and Poppy Pomfrey, Sirius had convinced the mediwitch to help him.

They hurriedly left via apparating once they were off the grounds.

As she had promised, Sarah was waiting in Harry's ward in the ICU, watching over the little boy protectively. She looked up when they apparated in and stepped back to allow Poppy to examine him.

Poppy cast a few diagnostic spells with a frown then sighed.

"He's in bad shape. His lung has collapsed and the muggles..." She shuddered. "Barbaric surgeries on a child!" She spat in disgust. "It's a miracle he's alive."

Sirius winced, staring at Harry sadly.

"I can heal him, but it will take a while. We'll have to take him away from this place." She said, still absolutely repulsed by her findings.

"We'll fake his death. A few memory modifying charms and a few data changing jinxes and we're free." Sarah chimed in. "I was thinking of taking him to Ysbyty Hud." She explained.

Sirius nodded, as did Poppy.

"I'll go complete those spells now." She said, checking her watch. "Shit, it's almost five in the morning!" She exclaimed and jogged out.

Sirius sighed. "Does she know it's Wednesday?" He muttered to himself, shaking his head in apparent amusement.

* * *

Sarah sighed as she muttered spell after spell after spell. What was she doing? Why was she helping that boy?

She hated Harry Potter. She hated him with all of her cold heart.

With a sigh, she finished her spells.

Instead of walking back to the ward, she sat in the waiting room, doing just that, waiting. Just as she sat down, Lucius Malfoy appeared in front of her and bowed.

"You called for me, Mistress?" He said formally.

"Let us retire to your abode, Lucius. I believe you have a son of Harry's age... Draco, correct? I'd just love to meet him." She said calmly, smirking when Lucius blanched. But he dutifully offered her his arm and apparated them to Malfoy Manor.

"Mistress Eira..." The pitiful wizard began. Sarah glared. She hadn't gone by that name for a while. It felt good to be back in power, to have her slaves trembling at her feet.

"It's Madam Rhewllyd to you, scum." She snarled, grinning to herself internally when he began to tremble. She was back. Sarah Dolyak was no more, there was just Eira Rhewllyd, the eternal mistress of the ice, back to reclaim her throne and destroy those not loyal to her.

Her appearance shimmered and warped, her hair changing to black and wild, eyes icy blue, skin pale as paper. She was now wearing a skin tight robe of shimmering light blue.

"Until war demands it so, I will pose as your niece, daughter of Bellatrix Lestrange. My name is Aella Lestrange. I'll be starting Hogwarts as soon as you can arrange it. Clear?" She growled, appearing now as a fourteen-year-old, smirking at Malfoy, who nodded and bowed.

"It will be done." He said. "I wish you good luck, Madam Rhewllyd." He apparated off, to tell Narcissa.

* * *

The next day, Poppy had transferred Harry to the Hogwarts hospital wing and was not bustling around, gathering potions and muttering spells and forcing an impossibly long list of potions onto Snape to brew or make his students brew. Currently, his fourth years were brewing the blood replenishment potion while the potions master worked on a nutrition potion that would cater to the rest of the list of healing potions the young boy needed. Just what Snape wanted to spend his time doing: helping the Potter brat.

In reality, he didn't mind.

"Charlie Weasley! Ten points from Gryffindor for your inability to follow simple instructions." He barked as a cauldron exploded because the idiotic ginger had put one too many drops of vampire blood.

These idiots were going to be the death of him.

He looked up as Professor Dumbledore walked in, leading a new student in a Slytherin uniform inside.

The girl surprised him completely. She had dark hair pulled into a messy ponytail, the frizzy black cascade begging to be free of its restraints. Her eyes were icy, a silvery blue, and her skin was paler than the parchment in front of him.

She looked like a young version of Bellatrix.

"Professor Snape, it seems we have a transfer student from Ysgol Myrridn, a wizarding school in Wales. This is Aella Lestrange; she will be joining you from now on." Dumbledore said, and then hurriedly left.

Aella looked around quietly.

"Miss Lestrange, why don't you sit next to Mr. Weasley over there? Maybe you will be able to assist him in the proper way to make a Blood Replenishment Potion." He said, watching her sashay over Charlie Weasley and sit beside him calmly.

Snape watched her carefully as she showed Charlie how to fix his potion, helping him execute each step calmly and patiently. He frowned deeply and went back to his own potion.

* * *

Hermione Granger was struggling. Her best friend had just died, and now her parents had as well. She didn't know what had happened. They had told her Harry was dead, and then there was this big blast... Now they were dead...

She sobbed quietly in the corner of the playground where she and Harry used to play. Of course, nobody expected that Hermione had been the one to kill her parents, albeit by accident. The cause of death had been put down to heart failure.

Really, it was accidental magic.

She continued to cry, wishing Harry would come back, or Miss Dolyak, who had left the school. Or even Sirius Tonks, so she'd have somebody to talk to.

Sirius was back in the school, though, after being shooed out of the hospital wing by Poppy Pomfrey. He looked around the playground with a sigh. He bit his lip when he saw Hermione and walked over.

"Hermione, do you want to come to my office to talk?" He asked gently, offering his hand to the crying girl.

She looked up hopefully and took his hand, letting herself be led inside to Sirius' office.

Once they were there, Sirius made his hot chocolate, discretely adding some calming draught that Poppy had given him for himself – _'I won't need this, I'm always calm!'_ – to the mix.

He placed the warm mug down in front of Hermione and sat opposite her.

"So, tell me what happened."

* * *

Detective Todd Wyclif frowned at the profile in front of him.

It had been four days since he'd been assigned to the Dursley vs. State case and he had a grand total of 0 leads. He was frustrated now. He _knew_ those bastards were guilty, he just had to prove it. He just needed evidence...

At precisely 15:31, a man walked into the office, dressed very casually. He strode right over to him, unbothered by security after a mere word with them.

"You are Detective Wyclif, correct? Currently working the Dursley vs. State case?" The man asked, smirking very slightly.

"Yes. Why, do you have a lead?" Todd asked, suppressing a grin at the idea.

"Why else would I be here?" He rolled his eyes, putting a tape down on the table. "My name is Sirius Tonks, the current psychologist at Little Whinging Primary. As such, all of my meetings are on tape, in case one of my students is going through something that may need to be brought up with the police." Sirius, as the man had introduced himself, was now smirking slightly more. "I couldn't come any earlier as I was taking care of Harry while he was in the hospital, and sorting out hospital billings and funeral costs. These are the tapes of my conversations with Harry and then with the Dursleys on Monday evening." He said calmly.

The man then walked out, leaving Todd grinning.

He had them now!

* * *

 **Review Responses:**

 **Radio Free Death: As always, thanks for the review. In the first paragraph of errors that you pointed out, you said it was quite an over-the-top punishment. I agree as it was a large punishment for a small action, but it was written like that deliberately. As for Harry merely whimpering when being burnt, after four years of being treated similarly, he would be rather used to it and may even have less sensitive nerves and pain receptors to allow him to deal with the abuse.  
Sirius Black, as many may know, was not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed. In the books, he only figured it out after 12 years, so it would be reasonable that he wasn't always aware enough in the first few years to notice small details such as the dementors not affecting him when he was in Padfoot form. Also, he may have been too weak to even shift to Padfoot in the years before this story began.  
Again, thank you for the review.**

 **KSarah Khan: Thanks for yet another review from you! The Dursleys will get at least six years each, probably much more, according to the British laws on what they have done. Currently, I am unsure on how to sentence Dudley, as he is underage and therefore cannot go to prison. However, Vernon will probably get a life sentence. As for Petunia, I am also unsure at current, as it is hard to determine her sentence due to her not assisting Vernon and Dudley in the actual acts of abuse. Dumbledore may or may not be held liable for anything, depending on how the next few chapters play out!**


	12. Chapter 12

_Dear Mr. Black,_

 _We have been notified of your wellbeing and request a meeting with you in the Ministry of Magic to discuss the terms of your freedom and the payment for four years of wrongful imprisonment. This meeting shall be held on 23_ _rd_ _January this year. Please be present along with your godson Mr. Harry Potter to determine the new legal guardian of Harry._

 _Yours faithfully,_

 _Althea Fawley, the Head of the Wizarding Child Welfare Office_

 _And_

 _Ignatius Prewett, the Head of the Wizarding Law and Imprisonment Office_

Sirius stared at the letter he had received from a beautiful sooty owl that had perched on his hand in the house in Privet Drive long enough for him to feed it a dead rat he had caught while in the form of Padfoot. It then flew to perch on the armrest of a chair.

It was Saturday that day, the 21st. Sirius grinned to himself and then frowned. Harry had to come...? He sighed as he wrote a hasty reply.

 _Dear Sir and Madam,_

 _Thank you for the letter regarding the meeting on January 23_ _rd_ _. unfortunately, due to an incident with his previous carers, Harry is currently in a state of comatose, so will be unable to attend said meeting. However, I shall attend and Harry shall hopefully recover soon enough for a separate meeting regarding his legal guardian as his current guardians are being held liable for charges of child abuse against Harry Potter._

 _Yours faithfully,_

 _Sirius Black._

* * *

Hermione looked up as Sirius walked into the orphanage she was currently in. He smiled at her and walked over to the woman who ran the place.

He spoke to her, seemingly flirting, as Hermione watched quietly, hopefully.

Sirius kept speaking for a while, and then took some papers, rather triumphantly, she thought, messing with the paints quietly, mainly because it reminded of her of her late friend.

Miss Matron, the woman who owned the orphanage, walked over to her, positively beaming.

"Hermione, I know this may be a little shocking for you, but it seems Mr. Tonks over there has come to adopt you!" She said, with fake enthusiasm that made Hermione wince.

"T-Thank you, Miss Matron." She said quietly, politely, standing.

"Hermione, go get anything important to you and we'll be off quickly. Anything else just leave, I'll buy you more." He said, looking around the small shabby space in disgust, then smiling at her. Hermione felt relieved and hurried to collect the few things she owned, other than the clothes on her back that actually belonged to the orphanage.

She stuffed the little book of poetry and the picture of her parents into her bag along with the stuffed toy lion she always kept with her. She hadn't been allowed to take only a few things after her parents died because they had never written a will and she was too young to come into her inheritance.

When she re-emerged, Sirius was waiting for her, seeming impatient and tense. Nonetheless, he smiled at her and offered her his hand as he had the day before in the school playground. He led her outside and to a rather shabby looking motorbike, handing her a small red helmet that was just the right size for her before helping her into the sidecar before getting on himself and driving off.

Once they were away from the crowds of the city, the bike lifted into the air as Sirius calmly drove up and above the clouds, higher and higher way above the view of anybody below. Hermione held back her screams.

They flew on and on until they reached a great castle. Sirius landed on the grass around it.

"Are you okay, kiddo?" He asked, slightly concerned. The shocked child nodded.

"Okay, good. Let's go inside, there are some things I need to tell you."

* * *

Harry was awake. He looked around the hospital wing in fear, hand going to his wrist where Xiuhcoatl's feather was still glowing. He relaxed slightly but kept looking around distrustfully.

What was going on?

' _It's okay Harry, you're safe. You're in a school called Hogwarts. It's for magical people like you.'_ A voice assured him gently. Harry relaxed further upon hearing Xiuhcoatl. If he was here, Harry knew he was safe as houses.

"He's just through here. Hermione, I assure you he's alive and safe. We had to fake his death to the muggles to minimise complications such as them wanting to put Harry in an orphanage like the one you were in." Sirius' voice floated from down the hall and Harry struggled out of the bed, remembering what he had been told.

Sirius walked in, leading Hermione, who looked extremely stunned and quite confused.

' _She is a witch as well. Sirius adopted her after she accidently killed her parents with accidental magic. I'm surprised you didn't do the same to the Dursleys!'_ He was informed by the firebird that had obviously made some sort of mental connection with him.

As Harry pondered this absently, Sirius had run over, startled to see him out of bed.

"Harry!" He said, rather excitedly but worriedly, scooping the boy up in his arms. "Poppy, he's awake!"

A plump woman jogged in, sighing at Sirius' enthusiasm.

"Stop yelling in my infirmary, if you please." She snapped at Sirius, after ordering him to set Harry down on the bed. Harry didn't seem to notice, busy being introduced to the people swarming him by Xiuhcoatl. He was currently being warned about somebody called Albus Dumbledore, who he wasn't to trust.

Poppy cast several different diagnosis spells, nodding.

"Everything seems normal... Strangely so for one who has just awoken from a coma." She commented.

"E-excuse me, ma'am, but is that... good?" Hermione asked hesitantly from behind Sirius, startling both the adults, who had forgotten she was there when they had seen Harry, awake and out of bed.

"Yes, it's very good," Poppy confirmed. Hermione smiled and nodded, grinning at Harry, who grinned back.

He may not trust the adults around him, but he knew Hermione. He definitely trusted her.

Harry squirmed, trying to get out of the bed. Sirius chuckled and lifted him up, setting him down on the floor gently. Harry flinched at the contact but Sirius forced himself to pretend he didn't notice.

Harry and Hermione ran off to explore, both smiling.

"Those kids are going to cause so much mischief." Sirius grinned.

* * *

"Mr. Dumbledore, a friend of mine told me you put some spells on me." Harry said innocently, now sitting in Dumbledore's office. It was lunch time for the school so Hermione was eating with the older students while Harry insisted he wasn't hungry.

Dumbledore frowned deeply. Where had the child come across such information? He remained silent.

"So, I would like to ask you if you could please remove them as Xiuhcoatl says they are harming my magical core." Harry continued. Dumbledore frowned more.

This child was confusing. He somehow knew of the spells. He somehow knew they were damaging and blocking his magical core, not allowing him to reach his full capacity.

Oh.

Dumbledore nodded gravely. "I shall remove them." He said earnestly, picking up his wand. He pointed it at Harry, looking about three and way too small for the chair he was in.

"Obliviate!" The elder wizard said, thus erasing the boy's memories...

A wall of fire surrounded Harry for a moment. This fire twisted as it took the spell, absorbing it and becoming just more powerful than before.

Xiuhcoatl the firebird glared at Dumbledore, taking his true humanoid form.

Harry wasn't sure if he should be afraid. Xi, as he had insisted Harry called him when Harry struggled to pronounce the strange name, was huge, but not like Uncle Vernon. He was roughly 6'5" with quite long, untamed hair that glowed and shifted restlessly like flames. He was well tanned with aristocratic features, strong cheekbones, and a sharp jawline. He had a fire in his eyes, one that made Harry cower slightly. He was surprised to see Dumbledore remain calm.

"You shall not dare erase the memories of Harry Potter, for he is protected by the magical creatures of the realms. Remove the spells you have placed on Master Potter." Xi ordered, glaring. His voice was a rich baritone, Harry noted, watching quietly.

Dumbledore flinched as he was ordered and weakly flicked his wand at Harry, thus removing the several spells - Trust me spells directed at himself and the Weasley family, magical blocks and damages, tongue twister spells if Harry ever attempted to tell others of his misfortune without the influence of magical potions such as Veritaserum, and several more.

Xiuhcoatl nodded and turned to Harry, quickly scooping the boy up in his arms and disappearing to the Great Hall with some variation of teleportation, unconcerned by the anti-apparation spells on the castle. Those didn't apply to him, he was a creature of magic greater standards than that of the wizarding world.

Harry Potter would remain safe in his care, no matter what foe he may meet, including petty anti-magic charms induced by inferior forms of the same magic they were trying to prevent.


	13. Chapter 13

_Wednesday 25_ _th_ _January 1986_

Harry, Hermione, Sirius, and Xiuhcoatl were now sat in the Potter Mansion. After some intricate spell casting from both adults, Minerva McGonagall, and Filius Flitwick, the huge mansion was now fit for the three wizards and firebird to live.

Sirius had officially adopted both and would start to train them on the coming Monday. And today, his cousin Narcissa was coming with her son Draco so the children could play and make friends. Harry, he had discovered, wasn't as comfortable around adults as he was children of his own age, so he hoped Draco would help teach him to trust.

The Weasleys were coming for dinner and bringing a friend their second oldest son, Charlie, had met in school. Aunt Cassiopeia, Uncle Pollox, Uncle Marius, Andromeda and her family, they were all also coming to the celebratory feast in the evening. They all hated each other, but they all insisted they should come, on the condition that none of them argue. Or else they'd have a nice silencing charm cast on them for the rest of the night.

So, Sirius was in the kitchens, being taught by the Potter house elves about cooking, cleaning, and everything else he had never had to learn as a child but wished to now. Xiuhcoatl was upstairs with Harry and Hermione, probably reading one of the books they had bought the previous day in Diagon Alley. They had also purchased a whole range of new clothes, quills, sweets – Sirius' suggestion of course – and basic books on magic. Xi had said they didn't need wands, saying he could make them for the children or they could simply use a feather of his.

Just on time, a house elf appeared next to him, announcing Narcissa and Draco's arrival and that he would take care of the cake Sirius was in the middle of preparing. Sirius thanked him and apparated upstairs to greet Narcissa.

"Cissy, good to see you." He said rather fondly, smiling at his cousin, who smiled back.

"Hello, Sirius. Where is your charge then?" She asked, smiling still, glancing at Draco, who stood behind her.

"Upstairs with Xi. I'll explain in a minute, let me just call them." He said, sighing at Narcissa's confusion.

The two children ran down the stairs, giggling as Xiuhcoatl chased them in bird form. Draco smiled a little and ran over, prompted by his mother. The three then went upstairs, followed again by the massive firebird.

"I guess we have a lot to discuss?" Narcissa said, raising an eyebrow at Sirius. They went into the massive lounge to talk.

* * *

They were waiting. Everybody but the Weasleys was there and were getting impatient.

Cassiopeia was fussing over Hermione and Harry, having cooled down about Hermione's blood status after remembering a certain potion that could alter her heritage and make her a true Black, which she, of course, was adamant on using or having Hermione removed from the family, which only started an argument. Before either Cassiopeia or Andromeda could get hit by a silencing charm, Hermione, Harry, Draco and Tonks had distracted them and the two were fussing over them, combing back hair, dangling toys in front of the three primary while the latter grinned and watched them.

Finally, the Weasleys arrived and the feast began.

Harry sat in between Draco and Hermione. He looked incredibly uncomfortable and kept glancing at Aella Lestrange, Charlie's friend from school. Tonks didn't seem to like her, sitting opposite Harry, often questioning him to see if he was okay.

The adults were talking, rather subtly about Harry's pre-education, Cassiopeia insisting he learnt her 'special magic', which was of course code for the dark arts. Molly Weasley was arguing it was nothing for the great Harry Potter to learn, which Sirius and Xiuhcoatl profusely agreed with. Pollox, however, agreed with Cassiopeia, causing an all out debate on whether or not Harry would be taught the Dark Arts.

It was eventually agreed that he would, on the condition that he also learnt the counters for each curse or hex and other forms of light magic as well. They then agreed that Hermione, Draco, and the Weasleys should learn the same as Molly and Arthur had been hooked when Cassiopeia explained how the dark arts aren't technically illegal because they are good for defensive and offensive spells in a fight.

* * *

After a while, they were finished and the adults retired to the drawing room while the children were left to roam free. Draco, Hermione, Harry, Ron, Ginny, Fred, George, Tonks and Charlie went upstairs to play, the latter two grinning as they planned a game. Since they were in the Potter Mansion, they could freely use magic without anybody ever knowing... Well, except those in the house.

Thus, they began to cast charms, Aella standing behind them silently as they transfigured the playroom into what looked like a jungle, with a small stream running through it – with the help of Xiuhcoatl, who told them what spells to do and would later claim himself to be totally innocent.

The younger children practically squealed with excitement, hurrying to go play. All except Harry. Charlie and Aella had joined them after a minute or two, and Harry still remained behind.

Tonks crouched next to him. "Harry, what's wrong?" The twelve-year-old asked him gently.

"Uncle Vernon says I'm not allowed to play on the play equipment." He said, frowning, looking scared. Tonks, forcing herself not to frown at that comment, nodded and picked him up.

"Well, Harry, is Uncle Vernon here?" She asked him, smiling slightly when he didn't flinch at her touch like he had when Charlie had helped him up onto the high seated chairs of the dining room.

"N-no..." He said quietly.

"Then I don't think he will ever know. Even if he does, I'll make sure he doesn't hurt you, 'kay?" She said, waiting for his nod before walking to join the others, who had begun a huge game of hide and seek, with Charlie seeking as he was the oldest. Tonks sniggered, scrambling up a tree with Harry still in her arms.

Once in a good hiding spot, she changed her appearance so she blended in with her surroundings, still keeping the five-year-old in her arms, before whispering to him what was going on.

"So you have to stay super quiet, can you do that?" She asked, grinning at the little boy, who nodded enthusiastically, glad to be included.

* * *

A/N: Sorry I haven't posted in so long! I didn't mean to be gone! I swear! I've been bedridden for the past few days with the flu so again, I'm terribly sorry as my mother wouldn't let me on my laptop... I swear she's the real life Molly Weasley! Anyway, sorry again and I hope you enjoyed the chapter. R&R please!


	14. Chapter 14

It had been half an hour.

Tonks was getting worried, as she hadn't seen a sign of Charlie or any of the others. Keeping Harry securely on her back as he had been while they were waiting, she scrambled down the tree, gripping her wand.

In the quietest of whispers, she uttered a spell. "Auxiliumi," She murmured, after a second, looking around in fear.

Their surroundings had vastly changed from the bright, happy jungle Charlie and her and created. It was dark and creepy, a thin blanket of frost covering the ground. She winced, pulling Harry off her back and into her arms protectively.

Harry was shaking, scared. He trusted Tonks, though, she'd protect him.

He didn't know why he trusted her so, but he did.

And then Aella came along.

Tonks didn't know what it was about her, whether it was her strange eyes or cold charm and personality, but she just didn't like her.

Aella grinned, her appearance altering as her own did, but not as hers did. She gasped as she realised who was standing in front of her.

"Shit." She muttered.

Eira smirked at her.

* * *

"Sirius!" Xiuhcoatl yelled, running into the drawing room. He had received Tonks' message but knew he couldn't face Eira alone.

Sirius was out of his seat and beside him in seconds, concerned; if Xiuhcoatl needed help, it was bad. Almost immediately, Cassiopeia was also on her feet, wand aimed at Xi as if he were a threat.

"Tonks is in trouble. It's Eira. She's here." The breathless firebird said, currently in his human form, ignoring Cassiopeia and Andromeda, who had stood up at the mention of her daughter.

"Okay, Xi, calm, breathe." Sirius urged gently. "Are you sure? How would she get past the wards?" He rationalised.

"The girl, Bellatrix's 'daughter', it was her, in disguise," Xi growled, regaining his breath. "And I somehow doubt Tonks would make a joke about this, she can be serious when necessary." He said.

Sirius frowned, about to argue. Cassiopeia would have none of that, though, grabbing her grand-nephew by the ear and marching him out and upstairs, wand at the ready. Sirius sighed and pulled out his wand, fully aware of Xi, Molly, Arthur, and Andromeda following quickly.

Once they were upstairs, they gasped.

* * *

Tonks was struggling.

To be totally honest, she was struggling majorly. Being only in her second year, she knew very few defensive and wasn't sure how to counter half of those Eira was using.

Mercifully, Harry was whispering some in her ear, some he and Hermione had learnt when reading in the huge library in the Potter Mansion.

"Protego." She growled. "Protego Horribilis," She continued, using as many protective and defensive spells as she could, not only shielding herself but Harry.

Eira smirked, countering and countering, again and again.

"Locomotor Mortis," Tonks yelled at Harry's suggestion. Eira laughed, making the curse ricochet to hit Tonks instead.

"Shit!" She yelled, falling as she tried forwards, carefully pulling Harry round so he was protected under her, kissing his head lightly to let him know he was safe, wincing slightly when he whimpered.

"Don't worry, Har, Xi will be here soon." She assured him softly, glaring up at Eira fiercely. "Petrificus Totalus." She snarled, using the appropriate wand movement and smirking when the Dark Mistress was paralysed.

Cassiopeia laughed when she saw the scene before her. Nymphadora was sitting up, recovering from a leg locker curse while Eira lay nearby, paralysed completely.

Sirius growled and ran forwards, scooping up Harry and rocking him protectively, glaring at the icy jungle surroundings.

Harry hugged him, scared, whimpering. "Tonks protected me from the mean woman." He whispered, noticing his fierce glare at the girl, who was currently healing with the aid of Andromeda and Mrs Weasley while the others ran off to find the children. Narcissa and Arthur came back with the Weasley children, Hermione and Draco.

Bill and Cassiopeia were restraining Eira.

Cassiopeia then marched over, casting a quick spell to recover Tonks faster, and then grabbing her arm and Eira's. She apparated to the Ministry of Magic, Sirius following after with Harry in his arms.

* * *

A/N: This will be the third to last chapter, but there will be a sequel! Eventually...

* * *

Spell Guide:

i Auxilium – A spell used to call for help, sending a telepathic message to the carers of the sender and whoever is near them. In this case, Tonks uses it to contact Xiuhcoatl, who she believes will be able to help the most.


	15. Chapter 15

Todd Wyclif was grinning with pride as the Dursley bastards were ushered into court.

With the evidence provided by Mr Sirius Tonks, there was no way to deny that they were guilty.

Vernon Dursley was given a life sentence, as the murder of Harry Potter was blamed on him. Petunia Dursley was sentenced to 22 years on accounts of affray, GBH and kidnapping. As no adoption papers or any legal forms had ever been completed to legalise the guardianship of the Dursleys, they had technically kidnapped the boy, Todd had discovered. The legal document they had provided, Harry's birth certificate wasn't even from a real hospital. St. Mungo's? That was a homeless shelter in Glasgow!

As for the boy, as no prison charge could be given as he was under the age of criminal responsibility, being only five; so he was instead put into intense psychiatric care, to ensure nothing similar to this ever happened again.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Magic was sentencing Eira after hearing what had happened. Tonks was not charged in the slightest as her use of magic came under the condition of reasonable in the face of life-threatening danger.

Harry was shaking the whole time in Sirius' or Tonks' arms, swapping depending on who went up to speak. Tonks carried him up to speak when it was his turn, soothingly stroking his hair while he stuttered through his recount.

Eira was sent to Azkaban to await the Kiss.

Tonks took Harry out to Diagon Alley with Cassiopeia, Hermione, Andromeda and Draco while Sirius and Narcissa remained to sort out some things. The Weasleys had returned home, as had Pollox and Marius.

They went straight to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour, taking a seat inside. Florean came over and gave them the menus.

Tonks was over-exaggeratedly surprised about Harry's lack of experience with ice cream, practically exploding into a full out rant about how amazing ice cream was and how it was simply a form of torture for a child not to have any. She demanded Cassiopeia get them some of every flavour to try, adamant Harry become an expert in the cold treat.

Andromeda spluttered and went to tell her great aunt that her daughter was not serious, when the great Cassiopeia Black chuckled and agreed calmly, ruffling Tonks' now punk purple hair.

Hermione and Draco seemed delighted as well as Tonks, though Harry blushed and stuttered that it wasn't necessary.

"Nonsense; no great-grandchild of mine will go without having Florean's ice cream." Cassiopeia snorted. "And, Tonks dear, there's no need to call me by my full name. Cassie will do." She said calmly, then insisting all her grandchildren call her it and finally insisting that she should call them her grandchildren as calling them her great-grand-nephews and -nieces made her sound like a very old woman, though that she may be.

Andromeda was incredibly surprised. But nobody else questioned it when their ice cream arrived. Tonks loaded a scoop of every fantastic flavour into Harry's bowl.

* * *

Sirius and Narcissa spoke to the family management office first. Narcissa was filing for a divorce from Lucius. Sirius, however, was speaking to the adoption services, requesting a heritage potion after talking it over with Harry and Hermione, both of who were happy to comply with their crazy Aunt Cassiopeia's antics.

When they were both finished, they left to find their families. Narcissa could not believe she was free from that psychopath and now going to be living with her cousin again, along with Cassiopeia and Andromeda, both of who had decided Potter Mansion was the best place for them to remain.

Sirius found them at Florean's. He smiled at Harry's ice cream smeared face as Tonks loaded another scoop into Harry's plate.

His family was back together.

* * *

Eira was pissed.

She would get Harry Potter. She would get out and she would kill him and that lousy bitch that dared face her.

She glared around, ice flying from her hands and spreading around the room, breaking the bars. She smirked and strutted out. Dementors followed her, not effecting her, but helping her. Knurled hands opened the cells of her followers. She descended calmly, killing the human or wizard guards without a glance.

She walked out, spreading ice over the sea and just walking on. Harry Potter would die.


	16. Chapter 16

_**MASS BREAKOUT AT AZKABAN CAUSES PANIC**_

 _Yesterday evening at 21:08, there was a mass breakout at infamous wizarding prison Azkaban. Eira Rhewllyd led over a hundred prisoners out and over the ocean on a path of ice. The dementors that were guarding the building have joined her._

 _Death Eaters such as Lestrange, Rosier, Crabbe and Goyle escaped. Many are cautious that there may be another war. Please be careful until these escapees are recaptured._

* * *

Lucius shook as he looked up at Eira. He was housing the Death Eaters, Eira and many other fugitives loyal to Eira's cause.

And Narcissa had gotten a divorce with him, baring him completely from seeing his son again as he had been 'abusive'.

In truth, he had been quite abusive, mentally; making his young son kill anything he loved other than himself and Narcissa. But that was over now... They were gone.

He had just been trying to protect them.

He forced himself not to show any signs of weakness as he showed his guest to the best room in the house before yet again retiring to his own room.

This would be an interesting time.

* * *

Sirius frowned as he read the paper. Then he stood up hurriedly, knocking over his coffee and startling the others at the table.

Xiuhcoatl was at his side in a second, skim-reading the paper before zooming off just as quick, using his firebird magic. Cassiopeia frowned and walked over, reading the article quickly before following Xi. Narcissa didn't even bother getting up.

"Eira escaped, didn't she?" She said blandly. Sirius nodded.

"Then don't worry. We've put up enough wards to protect us. I doubt anything, even Eira, is going to be attacking us." She said gently.

Sirius agreed, but turned to look at Harry, Hermione, and Draco, all playing with a set of dragon toys that behaved like real dragons only had a fire that didn't burn, just created a pleasant tickling sensation. Remus had bought them for Harry before he had been killed by Lucius, and had planned to give them to him when he met him.

He sighed as he thought of Remus, his best friend... had Peter escaped as well?

He hoped not.

Smiling slightly as Harry giggled, hugging the dragon that was about the size of his own forearm. The Antipodean Opaleye merely nuzzled the boy's chest affectionately.

The three children kept playing, blissfully unaware of the danger looming over them.

* * *

It was 20:50 exactly. Xiuhcoatl was tense.

He knew Eira was coming. He _knew_ it.

After a stern speaking to the dragons while in firebird form, Xi had granted the dragons' real, heated fire.

Of course, the wizards knew nothing of this. They didn't know the 'toy' dragons they had created were actually caused by a genetic imperfection known to the muggles as dwarfism that made the dragons smaller. A spell by some of his kind tamed their fire.

But the wizards knew not of this.

Harry and Draco were asleep in their shared room, Harry cuddled up to the Opaleye he had been hugging and carefully caring for the entire day. Draco was asleep next to the Hungarian Horntail that had grown quickly protective of the small boy that played a little too rough for the other dragons' taste. Hermione had the favour of most of the dragons but was currently curled up with the Catalonian Fireball, who had taken to her quite immediately as was already very fierce when it came to anything that could harm her Hermione. Apparently, she viewed Hermione as her own hatchling.

Xiuhcoatl was quite happy with the dragons' liking of the children, insisting that they all protected them if Eira came.

The dragons not sleeping with the children were in the sitting room with them, each having taken up their own wizard to protect. The Chinese Fireball had taken to Cassiopeia, the Common Welsh Green to Andromeda, the Hebridean Black to Narcissa, Swedish Short-Snout to Tonks, the Norwegian Ridgeback to Sirius, the Peruvian Vipertooth to Ted Tonks, and the Romanian Longhorn had simply curled up by the fire, too lazy to bother protected Xi himself. The only one that had surprised him was the Swedish Short-Snout taking to Tonks. Both were quite fierce, he supposed, but couldn't understand any other reason for the two to have bonded so.

It didn't take long for Eira to attack.

The cold snuck into the large house slowly. Simultaneously, all the dragons growled, the ones with the children jumping up and flying to the head of the one they were protecting, resting there in silence.

The wards broke easily. Death Eaters entered fearlessly.

Then it was an all out battle.

Both parties fought fiercely, spells flying all over the place.

Xiuhcoatl fought hard, defeating not only wizards but the bloody troll Eira had decided to bring. The Hungarian Horntail had joined the other dragons, thus letting him know Harry, Draco and Hermione were safe. For now.

Sirius panicked. Norberta, his dragon, had left him to fight elsewhere. He could see Tonks fighting Fenrir Greyback and forced down his anger, refusing to run over and kill the fur-ball where he stood. He had to focus on Harry. He promised he'd protect him from Eira.

Cassiopeia was fighting Eira. Eventually, the old woman was knocked aside, though, nearly dead. Sirius yelled something as Eira walked to Harry's room and straight in.

Sirius followed.

He fought past Tonks, now sporting a werewolf scratch down her arm. He stupefied his cousin Bellatrix who had just shot a killing curse at Arthur Weasley... Now he looked around, all the Weasleys were there, well, Charlie Weasley and older anyway. Bill was taunting Crabbe. Charlie was fighting with Tonks. Molly was shooting curses and jinxes and hexes at anybody that dared approach, sobbing over the body of Arthur Weasley.

He moved on, running to catch up with Eira.

The Antipodean Opaleye and Catalonian Fireball were in front of the children, growling fiercely and throwing as much fire at Eira as possible. Sirius noticed, startled, that it was a real fire, burning and catastrophic. Eira wasn't bothered, though. So they attacked, biting and scratching and trying their damn best to defend their nests.

They were blasted out the way, both encased in ice.

"Avada Kedavra!" Eira laughed, her wand pointed at Harry viciously.

"NO!" Sirius screamed, diving in the path of the green light.

The light bathed him.

Darkness.

* * *

 _ **Fin.**_

* * *

 **A/N: This is the first in a series. Do not fret. The tale doesn't truly end here. I'm not that mean.**


	17. Dear Readers

Unfortunately no this is not a new chapter. Instead it is a direction to the reboot of The Fire, titled _'Fire, Ice, And_ _Blood' -_ with an Oxford comma. In it I will be making sense of the many plot holes riddling the story and _'I can't even remember if this plagiarism is intentional or not anymore'_ moments in this story that jumped out at me when I reread it. Hopefully the reboot will make more sense and cover some plot holes you might not even have noticed... Though you probably did.

Thank you for reading this and an extra special thank you if you go on to read Fire, Ice, And Blood!


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